Just bcoz a helo can operate in high altitude does not mean it can be used in combat on that altitude. LCH can't operate at the altitude of Rezang La and the Himalayan heights are even higher in central sector.

Just bcoz a helo can operate in high altitude does not mean it can be used in combat on that altitude. LCH can't operate at the altitude of Rezang La and the Himalayan heights are even higher in central sector.

LCH is intended for use in air defence against slow moving aerial targets (e.g. aircraft andUAVs), Counter Surface Force Operation (CSFO),[22]destruction of enemy air defence operations, escort to special heliborne operations (SHBO), Counter-insurgencyoperations (COIN), offensive Employment inUrban Warfare, support of combat search and rescue operations (SAR) operations, anti-tankrole and scout duties.[23] It will also be capable of high-altitude warfare (HAW) since its operational ceiling will be 6,000–6,500 metres (19,700–21,300 ft)
So clearly states LCH can fight at a higher attitude than other helo i n the world and what it was designed for fighting in mountain .

Yes since funding from failed projects like Kaveri, Sudarshan lgb, Nagan TAS etc is being diverted to important items such as C-295 and M777 all thanks to Manohar Parrikar.

HAL's and other corrupt D-psu day's of having their own lobbyists in the form of UPA are over. The present govt is concerned with national defence not burning taxpayers money and increasing corporate profits of corrupt organisations.

BAE Systems is preparing a wide-ranging offset package for India's procurement of the M777 lightweight howitzer, seen here in action in Afghanistan, to include localised production. Source: BAE Systems
BAE Systems is preparing a wide-ranging offset package - focused on localised defence production - to support its anticipated contract to supply the Indian Army with 145 M777 155 mm/39 calibre lightweight howitzer guns, the company has confirmed to IHS Jane's .

Complying with India's defence offset rules, the M777 offset programme will be worth 30% of the agreed value of the contract, which is expected to be about USD700 million, and will be channeled through industrial accords between BAE Systems and around 40 Indian companies.

A company spokesperson confirmed that these partnerships will facilitate the production in India of a variety of BAE Systems defence products for national and international programmes.

In addition, BAE Systems has offered to transfer its M777 assembly, integration, and test (AIT) facilities from the United States to India. An industry partner to support the provision of AIT activities is expected to be announced in the second half of 2015 with associated costs for the transfer included in the purchase contract.

India's procurement of the M777s, along with Selex Laser Inertial Artillery Pointing Systems (LINAPS), was approved by the Indian Ministry of Defence in May. The purchase will progress through the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) mechanism, with the guns operated by the Indian Army's 17 Mountain Strike Corps, which is being formed for deployment along the disputed border with China.

"Our approach in the M777 offset proposal has been to tap into our diverse businesses, with their range of requirements to open opportunities for the Indian supply chain across our air, land, and sea programmes both locally and globally," the company said in a statement to IHS Jane's .

"In line with [India's] offset policy, the latest package - of over USD210 million - envisages investing in approximately 40 Indian defence suppliers across the country with an emphasis on the [state-owned] defence public sector undertakings and the medium, small, and micro enterprises sector.

"[This] reflects our commitment to India and confidence in our track record of fulfilling offset commitments around the world. Our offset partners in the offer for M777 will be diverse in both geographical spread and product categories."

Under the AIT package, BAE Systems' selected partner will undertake end-production of the gun system as well as assembly and maintenance, repair, and overhaul. The facility will also undertake similar activities for any export orders of the gun. BAE Systems' existing M777 AIT facility is located at Hattiesburg, Mississippi, where around 70% of the howitzer's assembly is completed.

Following the transfer of the AIT facility to India, however, some key parts of the gun will continue to be produced outside India. IHS Jane's has previously reported, for instance, that the M777 titanium barrel and associated recoil components will be imported from the BAE Systems plant at Barrow-in-Furness in the United Kingdom.

KSSL is a one stop solution for Artillery systems, offering comprehensive solution which includes processing of raw material (special grade ESR steel), cross disciplinary domain knowledge across verticals like metallurgy, material science, mathematical modeling, servo-electrical, hydraulics, electronics, etc, design & engineering capabilities, state of the art barrel manufacturing plant, fabrication facility, assembly, integration & testing.Bharat 52
Bharat 52 KSSL's state-of-the-art Bharat-52 is a long-range 155mm/52 caliber gun. It is the first indigenous solution of its kind designed and developed in India. Bharat-52 is a futuristic towed gun, providing a highly maneuverable field artillery solution. It has been designed for accuracy, stability and reliability during moving and firing maneuvers, and is based on the requirements of the Indian Army. Bharat-52 is capable of a range exceeding 40km and utilizes self-propelling capability and automatic laying mode. The Anti-backlash drive for elevation and traverse make it a truly unique system and a robust solution for superior battlefield operation. It is designed to operate as an all- weather system and has superior all-terrain mobility. Extremely easy to deploy, it takes a team of six crew members to deploy the system within one minute during day time and 1.5 minutes during night time. Bharat-52 in self-propelled mode is capable of achieving a mobility of 30kmph using its own diesel engine and electronic steering system.

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Garuda 105 is ultra-light gun system which utilizes the high end Soft Recoil Technology. This allows the weapon (gun) to be placed on light vehicles and nonstandard platforms, including aircraft and coastal and river patrol watercraft. This high tech system which was developed and manufactured in a record time of 08 months is a force multiplier for the forward forces and will prove to be a complete game changer in the realm of weapon system. BEAS
BEAS is the upgunned 130mm M46 to 155mm/45 calibre gun which has been designed and developed by KSSL by combining our rich experience, expertise and R&D with proven track record of Elbit Systems. It is a state of the art indigenous solution which is highly efficient, easy to maintain and made as per the requirements of the Indian Army.
In order to expand its horizon and have an all-inclusive capability, KSSL has also tied up with the Israeli company, Elbit Systems Land and C4I Ltd and entered in to a joint venture with a 74: 26 stake holding to form BF Elbit Advanced Systems Pvt Ltd. This provides an insight to the defence capabilities that Elbit has and gives it access to the tested and proven technology of Elbit Systems.

The move to purchase the ultra-light M777 Howitzer is a welcome move. However, further cheering can wait till the armed forces actually acquire the weapon.

The Defence Acquisition Council on (DAC) headed by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on May 11th cleared the purchase of 145 BAE M777 Ultra Light Howitzer. With it it’s hoped that it finally closes the deal which was proposed back in 2008 for what is seen as a principal weapon for India’s new Mountain Strike Corps, which is being raised to deter China. It will give teeth to this strike formation and form the backbone of its firepower.

The M777 is an ultra light weight 155 mm 39 calibre towed howitzer with a range of 30 kms. At under 4000 kgs per unit, it is lighter than any other 155 mm howitzer. The Bofors guns of India weigh in at about 11,000 kgs. The light weight of the M777 is due to the use of titanium and allows the M777 to be transported by CH-47 Chinook helicopters, C-17 Globemaster & C-130 Hercules aircrafts, the V-22 Ospreys or on trucks with ease to provide increased mobility. This will allow India to deploy lethal firepower in the mountain regions on the border with China. India already has the C-17 and C130J aircrafts. The government has cleared the purchase of 15 CH47 Chinook helicopters in a meeting of the DAC under Mr Arun Jaitley in August last year.

It has been a bumpy road for the M777 acquisition by India. It was first cleared in the year 2010 by the UPA government for outright purchase in a government to government deal via Foreign Military Sale (FMS) in which the buyer gets weapons at the same price as the US armed forces. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) notified the US Congress about the possible sale of 145 M777 howitzers to India for $647 million on January 22, 2010. The notification asserted that the M777 sale to India will “improve interoperability with US soldiers and marines”.

The M777 was cleared after the front runner, The Pegasus lightweight howitzer developed jointly by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) and Singapore Technology Kinetics was knocked out of the race following reports of bribery that necessitated a CBI investigation.

There was optimism that finally India will buy a howitzer after 3 decades. But the government of India under Defence Minister AK Antony didn’t move on buying the howitzer until May 2012 when under pressure from the Army under Gen V.K Singh who warned of serious gaps in the preparedness, the DAC under Mr Anthony cleared the purchase of the M777. This clearance had to be approved by the Finance Ministry and the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) for purchase. As with many other defence acquisition in India during the UPA rule, the process didn’t move forward.

In August 2013, The DSCA issued another note to US Congress about the possible sale of 145 M-777 howitzers to India for $885 million. This represented a hike of 37% in dollar terms but since the Rupee had depreciated since the initial announcement in 2010, what would have been a 2960 crore deal, increased to 5610 crores, an increase of 90%. The hike was due to the long delay in taking a decision to buy while the US held the price constant for 3 years and also because India asked for 30% offset in keeping with the defence procurement policy.

This put a spanner in the works. The hike and the offset proposal made the government of India to rethink on the deal. In October 2013, BAE announced that given the lack of progress from India, it will initiate the process to shut down the production line of M777. It had already spent $50 million on keeping the lines open waiting for Indian order.